Government Department concerned over brewery development

Construction company BAM is redeveloping the entire site with plans for a major concert and events arena along with a museum, shops and offices.

An impression of how the students apartments and new footbridge will look on the former Beamish & Crawford brewery site.

While planning permission is already in place for the development, Bam is now seeking permission to change the northern section of the development, in an area known as Site A, reducing the number of offices and shops in order to increase the number of apartments from 48 to 61.

A ramp leading to an underground car park is included in the plans along with a new footbridge connecting a revived historic laneway across the river to Crosses Green.

near the social welfare office.

The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht affairs have written to planners in City Hall outlining their concerns about the development. They point out that extensive archaeological remains are preserved on the site, which is located within the medieval core of Cork City.

“Furthermore, the subsurface remains of the medieval city wall are preserved within Area A,” the Department said. In addition, archaeological testing and monitoring on the site in recent times has revealed well-preserved, extensive subsurface archaeological remains within Zone A which are associated with the Viking and Early Medieval settlement of the city — particularly near in the vicinity of the carpark ramp and basement.”

The Department also said no assessment has been made of the impacts of the pedestrian bridge on the quay wall and possible subsurface town defences.

They also had concerns over a proposed height increase in height of the buildings in Site A.

“It is disappointing that the current proposal seeks to increase the height and bulk of the proposed development in Zone A which, under the previous application, already impedes the views from Elizabeth Fort across the city,” the Department said.

As a result, they have recommended the introduction of a number of planning conditions including a restriction on the height of the buildings to avoid impacting on the views of Elizabeth Fort and St Finn Barre’s Cathedral.